9 june 2012

Dmitry Medvedev visits the Kazan IT Park to see the launch of high-tech projects, including Innopolis, Kazan’s satellite town

Participants:

The aim of the project is to create a single location which contains all the facilities necessary for attracting IT companies and which will enable them to carry out their work and training. These companies will be employing highly-qualified young professionals. As well as business facilities, there are also plans to build transport and social infrastructure – roads, kindergartens, schools and hospitals.

"This is great!" the prime minister said.

Dmitry Medvedev was introduced to the newest member of the Kazan business incubator – LCOR, a computer games developer.

Avtodoria, a system of traffic speed monitoring, was the second project presented to Medvedev. This system shows the state of the traffic (for the time being, only in Kazan and on the M7 road). It measures traffic speed using the GLONASS satellite system and sends the data to a processing centre. Its developers asked Medvedev to help introduce amendments to the definition of "average speed" in the Administrative Code.

"And what will that change?" Medvedev asked. "Drivers will regard it as more honest," said head of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov. He explained that if the notion of an average speed is introduced, drivers will be fined for systematic violations of the speed limit based on their average speed being over the limit, rather than their highest, as is the case now.

"I bet drivers will love us for that!" Medvedev grinned. At the same time,

he thought the proposal was rational and said it could prove useful, especially on motorways.

Communications Minister Nikolai Nikiforov showed Medvedev some third generation infomats, which allow users to read up on the latest regional and federal regulations; arrange doctor's appointments; pay for services; see their children's school marks and homework assignments and file complaints. Nikiforov said 800,000 people received more than 10 million services last year.

Medvedev wished the team behind the business incubator success and, as is traditional, wrote his signature on the wall. "I wish you all creative and, as a result, commercial success," he wrote.